Jessica Biel: Getting clean water to the people who need it

Women's Impact Report 2012: Power of Women Honoree

Who: Actress Jessica Biel was last onscreen with Colin Farrell in sci-fi remake “Total Recall” and will next been seen as Vera Miles in “Hitchcock,” the Fox Searchlight biographical drama alongside Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Toni Collette and Scarlett Johansson, due out Nov. 23, and “Playing for Keeps,” opposite Gerard Butler, out Dec. 7.

What: Founded by former nightclub promoter Scott Harrison in 2006, Charity: Water has raised more than $73 million and funded 6,600 water projects in 20 countries with the help of more than 400,000 donors worldwide. When completed, the projects will provide more than 2 million people with clean, safe drinking water. Charity: Water also boasts a 100% model. Private donors cover administrative costs so that new donors can see exactly where their money is being used. Donors can view the wells they funded via photographs and GPS for each project.

Why: “It’s a basic, human need, desire and right to be able to live and grow up and raise your children and your family in a place that provides clean water, and it’s astronomical the amount of people who don’t have access to that in a convenient way. That’s why it’s important to me,” says Biel. She adds that the way Harrison runs his organization contributes to her continued support. “You’re actually creating change in someone’s life and community and you see it and you’re a part of it,” she says. “The money isn’t just getting lost somewhere.”

What’s next: “I’d love to have a real experience taking a trip with them and being a part of the building or seeing the well, meeting the community of people,” Biel says. “More of an in-the-field kind of experience. That’s really always the best way to feel connected to an issue.”